I won't speak for everyone but my $1,500 hearing aides are terrible Bluetooth earbuds. Music streamed from my phone is full of static and I end up going back to my trusty wired headphones.
If the AirPods work as hearing aides I'm never going back.
If the AirPods work as hearing aides I'm never going back.
Talking, chewing gum, and even just leaning my head back is enough to make the things fall out.
I really wanted to like these things as I have terrible hearing, and the assistive hearing on these is already pretty nice, but they don't do me any good if they won't stay in my ears.
I haven't had this issue with any other earbud I've ever owned.
Do yourself a favor and try a pair out first before you buy, if you can.
EDIT: I am very open to specific recommendations on 3rd-party eartips for these things.
Look at third-party tips. There's no set of 3 tips that can work for everyone, but with third-party tips you're much more likely to find some that work.
And tbh, I have this problem. Most circular shaped earphones are complete non-issue for me, many TWS models included, but not Apple earphones. Supposedly they offer SoTA performances in many domains, so it's kind of sad that I don't get to buy them myself or recommend to anyone unless they change it back to more commonly used shapes.
But in return you get a form factor that is comfy and refuses to fall out of your ears.
I've used AirPod Pros for the past ~3-4 years and have spent hundreds of hours walking, running, and biking with them. They have never once come out or even become loose, though I do use the smallest size tip.
The only problem is they last long enough that I can never remember what size I ended up using, so I have to buy a sampler kit instead of my preferred size.
Both ears need not use the same size tips btw, you can mix and match sizes as many people do. You can also use different tips in summer vs winter for better comfort due to thermal expansion.
https://www.complyfoam.com/products/apple-airpods-pro-ear-ti...
But a caveat - the foam tips do start to crumble after a few months, and the AirPods case seems to munch on them a little bit.
As long as you consider them a wear item and not something permanent, I think you’ll be satisfied.
After a year the white tips get this embarrassing nicotine yellow color that would be completely unavoidable had Apple offered any other tip color than white.
Don't get me started on the transparent plastic anti-snore nostril dilators.
How is the buttplug industry more accommodating with its color offering than Apple?
There are also silicone wraps for sale that achieve the same effect.
The regular AirPods work well ENOUGH for me that when I walk I don't need anything to keep them in, but running would be an absolute no go. And I feel like they never actually "stay put" in the ear even when walking. I always have to push them in again.
Will try these new ones, but most likely will fall back to my usual AirPods.
That said, hearing loss varies quite a bit and high end devices have meaningful benefits in terms of customization.
But I expect that we will still be switching between hearing aids and AirPods because they are different enough problems that they need different hardware. AirPod battery life isn't good enough and using them when talking to people is off-putting; it's a social signal you're not listening or don't want to be bothered.